Adam – original song and reflection on sin

I’m aware that a technical definition of sin is breaking the law. But Jesus taught that the thought process behind the behavior is even more significant or more effectual than the behavior. What seems most typical is that we decide whether or not we are sinners based on what we do. And because we are often scared to get caught for doing bad things, we get away with thinking we are good. Yet, we live in fear of various types (and call it being responsible or caring), we are experts at justifying and rationalizing pride, we keep ourselves from having to act in faith. So, while we might not be sinning in the sense that we are actively breaking the law, we are sinning by placing ourselves, our fears, and our rationality above God. I don’t think this separation between behavior and belief is healthy. Honesty is, even if it means admitting that you are no good, even if it means saying “this is what I want” now, believing that God will change you later. So, I decided to give Adam the voice of what I have seen in myself and my community.

Wow, this is beautiful 🙂
“Cause your nakedness goes no further than your skin.” – So true! Not only for Adams, but for Eves too. Adam obviously knew something was wrong with Eve, but hardened himself to the deceit because he “loved” her. He should have went to God first and given Him “another rib”. Eve was definitely playing games (something I think women definitely inherit) to hide who/what she really is which mean she had to start a performance. Now that we’re fallen, Eves is performing, and Adam is hardened to her games (if he points it out, its the doghouse for him). So, men and women just perform. There’s like, these screens in front of everyone’s face where they project how they want to be viewed on it to deceive people, maybe even believing their own performance 🙁 There’s no true intimacy, no nakedness of mind, no honesty. Just sharing some things God has nailed me on as I try to get rid of my own performance.

This is a beautiful and thought-provoking assessment, and I’m sorry for taking so long to respond. I really like that you picked up on nakedness. I’m pretty tired of my ability to be honest with myself and how that limits my ability to communicate with others. My hope to to be a safe place for people so they don’t have to perform any more. But there is so much distrust and skepticism around. Do you think it’s possible to stop the games, etc.?
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It is possible to stop the games, the performance, etc. We are broken people and the fruit of a “broken” tree is “broken” functioning. We can’t see our sinful condition, but we have evidence of it through our words/actions/thoughts/motives. Once we examine the evidence of our unseen condition (“faith”) and see how we lack God’s life-giving principle of love (since we follow our own principles), which is the standard, then we know what to pray about and can give Jesus permission to do what He died to do in us – restore us in His image, place His principle of love in me where it is lacking. No more trying to perform, trying to be good a “good” person, but actually walking with God, examining self in every situation that manifests an area for me to grow in (where I do not love), praying for him to fix that broken part of me, and then exercising self in that area He fixed so it can be strengthened. Every single time I’ve prayed about a character flaw in myself, He has been faithful to provide a situation soon after for me to grow in it… It’s just that I need to pay more attention in situations and not miss the opportunities.

I can relate with the lack of honesty with self. I would have saved myself so much time if I stopped believing my own performance and was just 100% honest about the ugly parts of me that my performance is covering up.

Nicely done my friend. Honestly, I laughed at the first few lines just because you did such a good job of taking the stupid excuses we give today and putting them in the mouth of Adam. I could totally hear him saying all that. The way he blamed God for giving Him so many good things and then wanting to start over after everything went to pieces. But the song was pointed too. Especially the last verses where you talked about how we believe the lies that we tell ourselves more than what God tells us. I still don’t get the naked part going no further than the skin but maybe if I think about it, it will come to me.